The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1887-08-26
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
Bigotry and the Evils of sectarian-
ism Discussed.
Preferences for Particular Religious BE
Hefs and FornsOf worship Lawful
and Proper, But United Chris
tian Labor Badly Needed.

REV. Il DeWAbG 1aAImaEG 0EAAb VIII
"Bigots," taking for his text:
Then said they unto him. "Say now Shibbo-
leth, :" and he said Sibboleth, for he could not
frame to pronounce il right Then they took
him, and slew him at the passages OF jordan
judges, xii, g.
Do you notice the difference of pronun-
citation between shibboleth and sibbolethg
A very small and unimportant difference,
you say. And yet that difference was the
difference between life and death for
great many people. The Lords people,
Gilead and Ephraim, got into a great fight,
and Ephraim was wOrsted, and on the re-
treat camo to the river Jordan to cross.
Order was given that all Ephraimites com
ing there be slain But how could it be
found out who were Ephraimites2 They
were decided by their pronunciation.
Shibboleth was a word that stood for
river. The Ephraimites had brogue Of
their own, and when they tried to say
shibboleth always left out the sound Of the
"h." When it was asked that they say
sbibboleth they said sibboleth, and were
slain.
Then said they unto him, "Say now Shib-
boleth;" and he said Sibboleth, for he could
not frame 20 pronounce it right. Then they
took him, and slew him at the passage Of Jor-
dan.
A very small difference, you say, be-
tween Gilead and Ephraim, and yet how
much intolerance about that small diff
ference The Lords tribes in our time
by which mean the different denomina-
tions of Christians-sometime magnify
a very small difference, and the only diff
ference between scores Of denominations
to-day is the difference between shibboleth
and sibbOleth.
The Church Of God is divided into
great number of denominations. Time
would fall me to tell of the Calvinists, and
the Arminians, and the Sabbatarians, and
the Baxterians, and the Dunkers, and the
Shakers, and the Quakers, and the Method
lists, and the Baptists, and the Episco-
pRlians, and the Lutherans, and the Con-
gregationalists, and the Presbyterians,
and the Spiritualists, and score of other
denominations ofreligionists, some of them
founded by very good men, some Of them
founded by very egotistic men, and
some Of them founded by very bad men.
But as L demand for myself liberty Of con-
science, must give that same liberty to
every other man, remembering that he no
more differs from me than 1 differ from
him. 1 advocate the largest liberty in all
religious belief and form Of worship. In
art, in politics, in morals and in religion
let there be no gag law, no moving of the
previous question, no persecution, no in
tolerance.
You know that the air and the water
keep pure by constant circulation, and 1
think there is a tendency in religious dis
cussion to publication and moral health.
Between the fourth and sixteenth cent
uries the church proposed to make people
think Alright by prohibiting discussion and
by strong censorship of the press, and by
rack, and gibbet, and hot lead down the
throat, tried to make people orthodox;
but it was discovered that you can not
change a mans belief by twisting Off his
head, and that you can not make man
see things differently by putting an anvil
through his eyes. There is something in a
mans conscience which will hurl off the
mountain which you throw upon it, and,
unsinged of the fire, out Of the flame will
make red wings on which the martyr viii
mount to glory.
In that time of which speak, between
the fourth and sixteenth centuries, people
went from the house of God into the most
appalling iniquity, and right along by con-
secrated affairs there were tides of drunk
enness and Righteousness such as the world
never heard of, and the very sewers of
perdition broke loose and flooded the
church. After awhile the printing press
was freed, and il broke the shackles of the
human mind. Then there came large
number of bad books, but where there was
one man hostile to the Christian religion
there were twenty men ready to advocate
o.; so / have not any nervousness in re-
gard to this battle going on between truth
and error.
The truth will conquer just as certainly
ms that God is stronger than the devil.
Let Error run if you only let Truth run
along with it. Urged on by skeptic's
shout and Observation-Disclosures spur, let IL
run. Gods angels OF wrath are in hot pur-
suit, and quicker than an eagles beak
clutches out a hawks heart, Gods ven
geance will tear it to pieces.
propose this morning to speak to you
Of sectarianism-its origin, its evils and
its cures. There are those who would
make us think that this monster, with
horns and hOofs, is religion. I shall chase
il to its hiding-place and drag it out of the
caverns of darkness, and rip off its hide.
But want to make distinction between
bigotry and the lawful fondness for pecul-
lar religious beliefs and forms of worship.
have no admiration for n nothingarian.
In a world of such tremendous vicissi-
tudes and temptation, and with soul
that must after awhile stand before a
throne of insufferable brightness, in day
when the rocking of the mountains and
the flaming of tho heavens, and the up
heaval of the sea shall be among the
least of the excitements, to give account
for every thought, word, action, prefer
ence and dislike-that man is mad who
has no religious preference. But our ear
" education, our physical temperament,
our mental constitution, will very much
decide our form of worship.
a style of psalmody that may please me
may displease you. Some would like to
have a minister in gown, and bands, and
suFplice, and others prefer to have min
lister in plain citizens apparel. Some are
most impressed when a little child is pre-
sented at the altar and sprinkled Of the
waters of holy benediction sin the name
of the Father, and of the Son, and Of the
Holy Ghost0; and others are more i'm
pressed when the penitent comes up out of
the river, his garments dripping with the
waters of a baptism which signifies the
washing away Of sin. Let either have his
way. One man likes no noise in prayer
not a word, not whisper. Another man,
just as good, prefers, by gesticulation and
exclamation, to express his devotional
aspirations. One is just as good as the
other. every man fully persuaded in his
own mind"
George Whitefield was going over a
Quaker rather roughly for some Of his re-
ligious sentiments, and the Quaker said
81 am as thou art; 1 am for bringing all
men 70 the hope of the Gospel; therefore,
If thou will not quarrel with me about my
broad brim, 1 will not quarrel with thee
about thy black gown. George, give me
thy hand"
In tracing out the religion of sectari-
anism or bigotry, find that a great deal
of it comes from wrong education in the
home circle. There are parents who dc
not think it wrong 70 caricature and ieer
the peculiar forms of religion in the
world, and denounce other sects and other
denominations. IL Is very often the case
that that kind of education acts opposite
to what il is expected, aud the children
grow up, and, after awhile, 60 and see for
themselves; and looking into those
churches, and finding that the people are